This Banksy mural in Clacton has been removed by the council Banksy.co.uk

A Banksy piece tackling immigration has been scrubbed from a wall in Essex after the council, without knowing who had drawn it, responded to a complaint that it was “offensive”.

The art work is commenting on anti-immigration sentiment and depicts five rock pigeons holding banners scrawled with “Migrants not welcome”, “Go back to Africa” and “Keep off our worms” towards a more exotic-looking bird beside them.

It cropped up on the wall of a boathouse this week at West Beach in Clacton-on-Sea, where a by-election will take place in eight days – one that the Ukip candidate Douglas Carswell is expected to walk away with.

According to the BBC, the council said it did not know it was a Banksy piece.

Banksy murals are often valued in the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of pounds – for example a piece entitled Mobile Lovers was sold for £403,000 in August after it appeared on the wall of a youth club in Bristol.

Tendring District Council said it had received a complaint on Tuesday that the mural was “offensive” and “racist”, so in accordance with procedures had it removed within 48 hours.

Nigel Brown, Communications Manager for Tendring Council, said: “The site was inspected by staff who agreed that it could be seen as offensive and it was removed this morning in line with our policy to remove this type of material within 48 hours.

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Banksy's New York residency

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Banksy's New York residency

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Banksy's New York residency

Banksy's 'Ghetto 4 Life' seen here sprayed on a Bronx street. The graffiti caused upset in the neighbourhood, which the Mayor said had been trying to rid itself of its 'ghetto' status

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Banksy's New York residency

Banksy's 'The street is in play' appears in New York City. The piece was also defaced shortly afterwards

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Banksy's New York residency

A dog sits next to a Banksy of a boy about to hammer open a water pipe

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Banksy's New York residency

Banksy appropriates a quote from the film Gladiator in one of his New York pieces

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Banksy's New York residency

Banksy's alternative bumper sticker gives New Yorkers a mantra to live by

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Banksy's New York residency

A work by Banksyseen through a chain link fence in the Lower East Side neighborhood of New York City

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Banksy's New York residency

A piece of street art depicting a heart-shaped balloon covered in bandages, allegedly done by the street artist Banksy, is seen on in the Red Hook neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The piece was defaced with red spray paint shortly after being completed

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Banksy's New York residency

A charming Banksy piece in the Bed-Stuy neighbourhood of New York

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Banksy's New York residency

Banksy's beaver, which marks the tenth day of the artist's New York residency, gnaws on a felled 'No Parking' sign

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Banksy's New York residency

A pug urinates on Banksy's tribute to 9/11 in New York

Chris Streger

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Banksy's New York residency

Banksy's final piece of graffiti as part of his month-long project in New York

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“We would obviously welcome an appropriate Banksy original on any of our seafronts and would be delighted if he returned in the future.”